About

The Canberra Mothercraft Society Inc (CMS) supports families of young children living in the Australian Capital Territory and surrounding region of New South Wales.

Through the Queen Elizabeth II (QEII) Family Centre and CMS community development programs, we deliver complex primary health care services in a modern, flexible, effective and responsive way. These services extend to partners, grandparents, friends and other primary carers.

Our services:

• promote and maintain health and wellbeing
• are accessible to everyone
• reflect community values
• are scientifically sound
• are provided by an educated work force.

We can’t make a difference on our own so CMS works with communities as well as ACT and NSW government and non-government health and social service agencies.

Our main funding is from the ACT Government, although this does not completely cover the costs of running QEII and our community development programs. We therefore rely on CMS memberships, fundraising, sponsorships and the support of volunteers to keep going.

Our history

CMS:

• Has provided professional health and social services to families of young children in the ACT and surrounding region of NSW since 1926.
• Was the first to provide primary health services to families in the ACT.
• Has a long history of identifying gaps in services for families with young children and establishing new services to meet those needs. Once established many of these new services have become organisations in their own right or are now run by the ACT Government.
• Has provided day care, home help, child and family health clinics and day stay at QEII.

CMS was distinctive in demonstrating very early on in the new national capital its capacity to deliver complex primary health care services with economy and responsiveness to community needs. It continues to demonstrate that proud history today.